The Covid 19 pandemic has organically re-written rules, terms and conditions we as human beings have grown accustom to and within the darkness of the unknown, high tech companies such as Amazon have found ways to switch lenses so to speak…
Social Distancing has resulted in less work for a whole lot of people and although grocery stores are considered essential businesses to keep open, there are grocery stores that are much more popular than others. This in itself can result in over-crowding and if not careful, accidentally keep perpetuating the vicious cycle we’ve been in, emanate more deaths.
Amazon Is Making Whole Foods Into Temporary Warehouses
One of, if not the most popular (organic) grocery chain in the country is Whole Foods, which brought in over $4 billion in sales in 2019. While most grocery stores continue opening their doors to the outside public, while adding a few extra precautionary changes to help keep staff safe, Amazon went in the direction of making Whole Foods into temporary warehouses. The plan began in Los Angeles, California where penalties for not practicing social distancing has become more rigid than most places in the United States.
This past weekend, a group of friends who decided to take a road-trip to another county in order to purchase alcohol were stopped by local police on their way back home and given multiple tickets in the amount of $1,000 a person. That’s California and if you’re from another county trying to slip in under the radar to extend conversation, it’s gonna cost you. I just hope it was a great conversation! But I digress…
The idea for Amazon making Whole Food stores into temporary warehouses is absolute genius not just for the consumer’s safety during these unprecedented times, but also for Amazon’s Prime membership! Not only does Prime give members access to 2-day delivery of any “Prime” product Amazon has to offer, members also benefit with Amazon Fresh, which includes Whole Foods.
The Grocery E-Commerce Space Is By Far Killing It
While many walk-in grocery stores (large and small alike) are witnessing their sales dwindle (in some cases) to oblivion, the grocery e-commerce space is by far killing it despite these uncertain times. If you’re a grocery store with an online presence, up to date database and accept payments online, you’re doing better than your walk-in counterparts. Case and point, places like Walmart that offer curbside pickup have already experienced a profound shift in online grocery demand! Amazon has already added over 100,000 warehouse employees and are already in the works in adding another 75k.